30 September 2019
|
The Royal Mint Museum have launched an online exhibition to help collectors discover the history of St George on world coins.
The online exhibition spotlights a variety of coins from across the globe, looking at how St George has been portrayed over the centuries.
Coins included in the web showcase include:
- a Sovereign of George III (1816)
- a half-scudo coin of 1703 issued by the Italian Papal States featuring St George and the dragon
- and the Petition Crown of Charles II (1662), which features St George and the Dragon as a very small but significant detail at the centre of Thomas Simon’s remarkable design.
The heroism of good triumphing over evil has been celebrated for thousands of years and appears on paintings, sculptures and coins, with St George a popular subject for such works of art, shown dramatically slaying a dragon.
In 1817 a British George III gold sovereign used Benedetto Pistrucci’s interpretation of George and the Dragon to create a distinctive coin and the following year the Crown was issued with a similar design. Also featured are George nobles issued during the Tudor era (as illustrated) and a William Wyon interpretation of George and the Dragon created for Prince Albert.
Long before Pistrucci and Wyon’s work, countries across Europe has featured St George on their coins, with Italy and Germany being particularly fond of the legend; the German States featured St George from the 1670s with the Italian states following suit in the 18th century.
Other online exhibitions from The Royal Mint Museum include ‘Portraits of Queen Victoria’, ‘Women in the Mint’ and ‘The First World War’.
Explore the exhibition at Google Arts & Culture and find out more about the Royal Mint Museum at: www.royalmintmuseum.org.uk
(Images copyright Royal Mint Museum)
Get price lists, auction details and events delivered direct to your in-box…
Sign up to receive the free 'BUY & SELL' newsletters today!
